Highland

Good Looks - Great Beef

The highland breed of cattle has a long and distinguished ancestry, not only in its homeland of western Scotland, but also in many far-flang part of the world. One of Britain's oldest, most distinctive, and best known breeds, with a long, thick, flowing coat of rich hair and majestic sweeping horns. The highland breed has remained largely unchanged over the centuries.

The breed was developed from two sets of stock, one originally black, and the other reddish.

General

Hairy, horny and healthy

Hardiest and shaggiest of British breeds, Highland cattle are often as much a part of a mental picture of a Scottish landscape as castles or kilts. The breed has a character in keeping with its traditional environment. However to limit the breed to such an horizon, severely underestimates it potential and magnificent qualities.

As one of the original beef breeds, the cattle have remained almost unchanged, retaining a rugged solidity which is appropriate and reflective of that Scottish background. This square shaped block of living beef stands serene in almost all climatic conditions, with wide spreading horns being as much a part of the identity as the shaggy almost impenetrable coat of long wavy hair.

The highly visible features are complimented by a straight back, a broad chest, short legs, and wide loin creating a deliberate movement or gait. The meat, too, is of highest quality and the cattle can find much of their own living on poor pastures. Their longevity and hardiness minimizes management and attention, even at calving times.

The Highland, as a first cross, is of great value. Supporting this are the recent Canadian experiments on dam productivity, in controlled environments, involving herds of purebred Highland, Highland-Hereford cross and purebred Hereford cows. The results reinforced the commonly held view of Highland breeders, that the Highland cow is a wonderful mother, and when crossed with a bull of another breed can produce an outstanding calf.

The hide and hair being an excellent insulator, the Highland limits the amount of fat cover on the outside of the carcass, producing instead, lean well marbled meat and creating two key benefits attractive to the meat industry:

* less fat means less waste and greater dressed weight;* the limited fat globules, which do exist, are marbled evenly throughout the carcass producing tender beef.

Advantages

HardinessA breed which can be readily out-wintered in even the harshest of winter climates.

AdaptabilityThe breed's versatility has led to a presence in twelve countries with a wide range of climatic conditions.

Characteristic Traits

The majesty of the Highland comes from its unique breed characteristics. Every aspect of the animal contributes to the breed character.

The head should be short with a wide muzzle. A wide muzzle is essential to ensure that there is plenty of space to eat and that the animal gets a secure hold on its food. The bottom teeth should rest firmly on the pad of the upper jaw. If the lower jaw is over or undershot, the animal will not be able to bite or chew sufficient food for its daily needs.

The eye should be clear, bright and free from disease. It may be any colour. The eyelashes are long and curl upwards. Prospective breeders often look for alertness in the eye of a bull.

The dossan is the name for the long hair on the head. It should cover the eyes. It may be curly or straight.

The ears should be well rounded and sit on the head at the "ten to two" position. Long strands of hair fall from the ear. Animals with ragged edges or pieces missing from the ear may be exhibiting a genetic fault called "Crop Ear".

The horns on a bull should be strong and level with the head. They grow outward from the head and then curl in, slightly towards each other. It is the female of the breed that grows the spectacular horns that the breed is famous for. The female's horns are finer than those of the bull. They should be level on the head and grown outward before turning upwards then outwards at the tip. On some cows the tip of the horn will also tip backwards.

The body should be strong and well proportioned. The neck should be short and firm not scrawny. It should curve gently into a neat brisket. The neck and brisket of the bull will be much thicker and fuller than those of the cow. The shoulder should not protrude. It should sit well into the body giving the animal a solid look when viewed from the front.

The back should be straight and firm with sufficient length to carry plenty of the prime cuts of beef, but not so long that it sags.

The belly too should be straight, thus giving the animal a healthy beefy look.

The ribs should show plenty of spring thus giving lots of room for the animal's vital organs (heart, lungs etc). This is essential to ensure good growth and a long life.

The hindquarter should be strong, even and heavy with meat. It is this area of the animal that carries most of the salable meat. When we look at the rear of the ideal animal a triangle bounded by the tail, the hip bone and the knee should be heavy with meat.

The tail head should not protrude from the body. This leaves the rear of the animal with a square, even look. The tip of the tail should have plenty of hair giving it a thick, bushy look.

The legs should sit evenly on the four corners of the animal and should be short and stocky.

The feet are one of the most important features of the animal. Healthy feet are vital so that the animal can walk to water and feed and so that the bull can mount the cow. The hoof should be free from cracks and the animal able to walk on the sole of the foot. There should not be any excessive growth of the hooves. The observer should be able to see light between the cleats.

The udder should be firmly attached to the body with the teats placed evenly on the four corners of the bag. This ensures that the calf will be able to drink. An uneven udder with one quarter obviously larger than the others may indicate a history of mastitis in the animal.

The testicles of the bull should be attached firmly to the body. Both should be of comparable size but not so long that the bull is in danger of injuring himself by accident standing on them as he stands up. Two cans of beer are a reasonable comparative measurement. (A.I specifications will usually give you a circumference measurement - Check with your vet for acceptable measurements).

The coat gives the animal its distinctive shaggy look. There are two layers of hair, a soft short undercoat and a long shaggy layer. The hair may be straight or gently curling. In the wild weather of the Highlands of Scotland hair that is too curly will hold the rain and the snow to the detriment of the health of the animal. In summer the animal will shed most of its coat. This is especially so if the cow is in milk.

The colour may be any of six official colours: - white, yellow, red, brindle, black and dun. It is often difficult for the new breeder to identify the colour of a new calf as most calves are red "balls of fluff" when they are born.

White calves are obviously white.

Yellow is the name given to the colour that ranges from a dark cream to a light red.

Red animals are the obvious rich red colour animal.

Brindle animals display black stripes on the face, neck and body.

Black animals are born a dusky black but are clearly black by the time they reach twelve months of age.

Dun is the name for the "other" colours. They range from that beautiful silver colour through the greys and browns to a very dark grey colour that is nearly black.